Wrong Way
by Isisthatcan
Summary: What if Brad had followed Ric as well as Matilda? What would Rocco have done to ensure his escape? AU. RM and SB.
1. Chapter 1

Wrong Way

Disclaimer: I don't own anything people recognize.

Summary: What if Brad had followed Ric as well as Matilda? What would Rocco have done to ensure his escape? AU. RM and SB.

Author's note: First H&A fic, so be gentle? I'm in the UK so I saw today's episode (I think either ep.4341 or 4342; the one where they find out it was Rocco…) and this instantly just popped into my head and I had to write it. I know what's going to happen next in this storyline – the wonder of spoilers! – but this idea just wouldn't leave me alone so I thought I'd do an AU. If you like and wanna read more, just review! Please?

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Ric was out of there before Brad had even finished speaking. Looking dumbfounded and feeling completely confused, he turned to Sally.

"What? Rocco did it?" He rushed forwards and grasped Sally's arm "Are you alright?"

"I'm f-fine," She stammered, looking anything but "I just need- on my, Ric. Can you go after him? He's completely out of it."

"Matilda's with him."

"That might not be enough."

"Ric listens to Matilda." Brad said, desperately not wanting to leave Sally's side.

"Yes, he does, but he won't be listening now. And Mattie can't break up a fist-fight between them. Brad-"

I need to know he'll be alright. That he won't do anything in the heat of the moment; he's so emotionally charged."

"I'm not leaving you alone Sally."

"Please?" She asked, searching his eyes "I don't want Ric to do anything rash, to get into trouble. Please Brad."

He sighed unhappily, but nodded "I'll be back as soon as I can." And kissing her on the forehead he hurried from the house.

He was outside the surf club in a few minutes, his need to find Ric and get back to Sally fuelling his adrenaline-high-sprint. For a second he wondered where they could be – and how he could possibly find them in time for who knows what – when he heard a scream. Turning to his left he heard Matilda scream again for Ric to stop, and his legs were moving before his brain had even processed that Ric was kicking Rocco, who was lying on the floor.

As Matilda pleaded again with Ric, getting far too close to the brawling boys for Brad's comfort, Brad ran up besides them. Bending forwards he grabbed Ric from behind, holding the boys shoulders, and pulled him backwards away from Rocco.

"What are you doing?!" Ric yelled, fighting against Brad's hold "This scum stabbed Sally!"

"He doesn't need a beating Ric," Brad said sternly, beginning to pant from the effort of holding onto Ric "And Sally wouldn't want him to get one, least of all want you to be the one giving it to him."

"He deserves to die." Ric growled, looking at Brad with pain, hurt and anger in his eyes.

"He deserves to rot in jail," Brad replied, emphasizing the 'rot' with an icy tone "Not for you-"

"Ric!"

Both men turned at Matilda's cry and watched in horror as Rocco forcefully pushed her into the car and started the engine, pushing her down as she tried to get out the other door.

"MATTIE!"

If Brad had thought Ric had been strong just moments before, it was nothing compared to now. His arms were almost ripped out of their sockets as Ric lunged forward towards the car. Watching in frozen fear as Ric tried desperately to rescue Mattie, Brad saw the young boy screw up his face as he pushed Mattie back against her seat and accelerated, the car speeding along the road with a desperate Ric trailing behind.

Brad still felt frozen as he watched Ric slow as the car got away. Had that really just happened? Had Rocco really been the one to stab Sally? And had he really just taken Matilda? Had he really been crying as he pushed the girl about? Or was that just him seeing things? Shaking his head to clear his turmoil thoughts he ran to catch up with Ric, now standing desolated in the middle of the road.

"Come on. We need to get back to Sally and call Beth and the police."

When Ric didn't move, still staring after where the car had been, Brad grabbed the younger man's arm and started dragging him away. "The quicker we call the cops the better Ric, now come on."

"Right," Ric said dazed, his eyes glassy, but he moved along with Brad as the two began to run back to the house.

"Ric, you're alright!" Sally greeted the as they raced indoors.

She began to get up to hug him when she realized that the third member of their group was missing "Where's Mattie?"

Brad didn't answer her as he reached and dialed the phone. Ric simply turned away and grabbed the first thing he could, a vase, and threw it against the wall.

"If he does anything to her, I'm going to rip him limb from limb." Ric growled, his whole body shaking with fury and his eyes scrunched up with pain.

"Who to what?" Sally asked "I don't understand, Brad what's going on?"

Brad simply shook his head as the person he was waiting for picked up on the other end "Peter? Yes it's Brad Armstrong. Listen, Sally remembered who stabbed her, it was Rocco Cooper… I know she'll have to give a statement but just listen to me and don't interrupt, that's not the problem, Ric went to confront him… Yes I know that was stupid, would you please just listen? That's not what's important, I went along too, to stop anything from happening but Rocco still got away and he took Matilda with him."

Sally gasped, and stumbled backwards for the support of the table as Ric hit the wall and Brad took a breath.

"Yes that's exactly what I'm telling you, Rocco, who almost killed Sally, has taken Matilda and we don't know what he plans on doing. Just that he was leaving, making a run for it." Brad continued, reaching out an arm to steady Sally.

Moving into his half-hug embrace, Sally couldn't help but be afraid. Had she gotten Rocco so wrong? Not only had he stabbed her, but now he had taken Matilda hostage. These weren't things the quiet, thoughtful boy she thought she'd known would ever do. How had she been so wrong? Turning she saw Ric standing by the wall, holding his body up against it as he shook. She knew he was imaging the terrible things that could be happening to Matilda right now. What price would they all pay for her totally wrong judgment?

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Please review and tell me what you think! 


	2. Chapter 2

Wrong Way

Disclaimer: I don't own anything people recognize.

Summary: What if Brad had followed Ric as well as Matilda? What would Rocco have done to ensure his escape? AU. RM and SB.

Mattie hunched up against the door as Rocco sped out of the car park. She could hear Ric shouting her name but all she could do was stare at Rocco. This wasn't the quiet boy she knew, or thought she knew, as the Rocco she thought she'd known would never had hurt Sally, let alone tried to kill her. Watching him with large eyes she only then realized that he was crying, silently. The tears were streaming down his face as he drove. As scared as she was, this got her thinking; a small ray of hope in an otherwise desperate situation. Was this really what Rocco wanted?

She drew a breath and opened her mouth to talk when Rocco beat her to it.

"Don't," he said "Just don't say anything, ok? I don't want to have to hurt you."

"Did you have to hurt Sally?" Matilda asked before she'd even thought of what she was doing. She was sitting in a car against her will with someone she knew was capable of hurting people he said he cared about. Why wasn't she listening to him? Why was her gut telling her that getting him to talk was the only way of them getting out of this alive?

Rocco breathed in sharply, and then coughed quickly, his shoulders hunching up and a look of pain grimacing his face. Ric had obviously done some damage to his chest in their confrontation.

"Are you alright?" Mattie asked automatically.

"Do you care?"

"I don't know." Mattie answered honestly, confused by both the fear and the curiosity she had about this boy.

Rocco looked at her for a second and she could tell she was starting to get to him. That everything about today was starting to get to him. And for some reason that soothed Mattie. It meant Rocco wasn't a complete psycho, that some part of him still cared, and that maybe, just maybe, this wouldn't end in more violence and pain.

"Where are we going?"

"Somewhere I can get some advice."

"But where?" Mattie pressed, she needed to know where they were headed, if only to settle her stomach and give her some idea of what lay ahead. Of whether there was a chance someone would find them , or she could talk her way out of it, or if Rocco could change his mind…

"To see Johnny."

Everything Mattie had just felt was blown out the window. Now all she could feel was fear. Johnny Cooper. Whose gang had terrorized Brad Armstrong for months, had framed him for drug possession and made him lose his job. The man who had made Rocco attack one of the few people who had given him a chance and showed that they'd actually cared. There was no way that this was going to end well – for either of them.

Gulping, Matilda hunched back in her seat even more, clinging to the door's arm rest; this couldn't be happening, she told herself. There was just no way this could be happening she repeated over and over as the shock began to set in.

I know its short but I wanted to get the next chapter up as soon as I could. Please review! More will be on the way soon.


	3. Chapter 3

Wrong Way

Disclaimer: I don't own anything people recognize.

Summary: What if Brad had followed Ric as well as Matilda? What would Rocco have done to ensure his escape? AU. RM and SB.

Author's note: Thanks to everybody who reviewed and sorry it's been awhile but I've had revision to do for my exams. I have a plan in mind for this story and I am definitely going to finish it, but you'll have to bear with me. But don't worry about that now as here's the next chapter – enjoy!

H&A-H&A-H&A

It wasn't that Johnny Cooper was ever unhappy to see his little brother. Rocco was his brother and whatever happened he'd look after him; his way, no-one else's. He loved Rocco and would do everything he could for him. But lately whenever Rocco had come to see him it had meant trouble. And more so than usual. For that first split second he'd seen his brother as he'd walked into the prison's visiting yard, Johnny had known it was something big. His brother had messed up even more than he had done before. Then he had seen who he was dragging after him.

"Are you crazy?!" he hissed as soon as his brother came into earshot.

Rocco's eyes were wide and he was pale, meaning that he was completely out of his depth. He walked closer to his brother, depositing Mattie onto a bench between them and keeping a firm grip on her shoulder, which was how he'd been steering her since he'd pulled her out of the car and brought her into the prison with him.

"It was the only way I could get out of there." Rocco said numbly, his eyes pleading "They would've killed me otherwise."

"And you would've deserved it." Johnny snarled.

Mattie gasped at that, her shoulders tensing under Rocco's hand.

Johnny bent down low, so his face was close to hers, smiling manically whilst he whispered "Not another word princess. Or you'll lose that pretty smile that also helps you talk. Understand?"

Matilda didn't move or do anything to acknowledge Johnny's words; she just looked straight up at Rocco. But he wouldn't meet her fearful eyes, he wouldn't even look at her face.

Johnny straightened and turned to his brother "Now, obviously you need some help. And some big time help too as this pretty little thing isn't going to be easy to hide."

"Hide?" Rocco asked "Hide her? Why do we need to even take her? I was thinking I'd just nick another car and just leave her in the first town I passed."

"See that's why I'm the brains here Rocco." Johnny said, his eyes hard and cold, matching his tone as he talked down to his brother "If you did that she'd be able to tell them where you are and what car you were in. They'd have a timeline and you'd be followed. Which would be very useful wouldn't it? Coppers would catch you within the hour."

"Johnny she's got nothing to do with this. I just dragged her along so I'd get away-"

"And you did, well done little bro that was a good move. But know we need to think of the next one. We've got to stay one step ahead. And she might just be able to help us with that."

"How?" Rocco said apprehensively "I don't want her getting hurt Johnny."

"She'll have what's done to her if – and when – I say so," Johnny growled back "A bit of blood won't hurt her now, will it?"

Turning Johnny again bent down to Matilda's eye level, this time running his thumb along her cheek "You'd do that willingly won't you princess? After all I'd hate to have to tell Rocco here to do it unwillingly."

Mattie's eyes widened and her whole body tensed but she didn't say a word. Rocco's hand was now digging into her shoulder painfully, as he gripped her for support. Somehow she knew that he didn't want to have to hurt her. But if Johnny told him to, he'd have to.

Standing again, Johnny faced his brother "Now, here's what you're gonna do."

H&A-H&A-H&A

Lucas couldn't believe what his father had just said. His ears must have something wrong with them. But even as this thought crossed his mind he knew it wasn't true. He knew it in his gut. He knew it by the look in his father's eyes, by the grim set of his face. He'd sent hat look before, when Jack was in hospital. It was the look of a father who was helpless to help his child.

"Mattie is- is with Rocco…" he said slowly, taking a deep breath "Who stabbed Sally…"

"Yes." His father replied tersely.

"He kidnapped her in a stolen car," Lucas continued his voice still slow "And we have no idea where they are… or where he's taking her."

"No." Tony answered "But she'll be alright Luc."

"How do you know that?" Lucas snapped before he could stop himself "Rocco stabbed Sally. _Sally_, Dad. If there was one person I would've said nobody could ever hurt it was Sally. But for some reason he did hurt her, nearly killed her in fact. And since she was the one putting him up and giving him a chance at a new life it makes it even worse. It means Rocco's capable of things we wouldn't even think of."

Tony looked at his son whose face was pale and tight, and knew that he was just worried about Matilda, that he hadn't really meant to snap. He knew he didn't blame anyone except Rocco. But that wasn't the way Beth would see it. That wasn't the way Tony felt…

"And she's with him." Lucas finished quietly, his eyes downcast as he was probably thinking of all the worse-case scenarios "So don't say she'll be alright. I want her to be, I guess I almost need her to be, but just don't say it, ok? Because if she's not-"

"There are too many people here who care about her for her not to be." Tony interrupted, his voice strong, almost forceful.

Lucas nodded, but his eyes were still lowered, not meeting his father's "I'm going to go over to Sally's, see what Ric knows."

"Alright." Tony sighed "I'm going to call Beth."

H&A-H&A-H&A

Hey hoped you liked, and if you did, you know the drill…


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